60 per cent of students training to be maths teachers in secondary believe that most pupils do not understand what the subject is about

19th December 2003, 12:00am

Share

60 per cent of students training to be maths teachers in secondary believe that most pupils do not understand what the subject is about

https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/60-cent-students-training-be-maths-teachers-secondary-believe-most-pupils-do-not
* Around 60 per cent of students training to be maths teachers in secondary believe that most pupils do not understand what the subject is about, according to a recent survey by Professor Macnab. Some 46 per cent thought that most pupils cannot be expected to like maths and 43 per cent thought that it was very hard for most pupils.

But among young primary teachers, the equivalent figures were 12 per cent, 20 per cent and 24 per cent. He puts this down to the essentially child-centred approach in primary and the more subject-oriented approach in secondary.

A study by the professor in 1999 also showed that nearly half (49 per cent) of 393 S2 pupils ranked maths down the popularity list.

“Attitudes and practice in mathematics teaching: the views of some probationer teachers in Scottish primary schools” is by Donald Macnab at Aberdeen University. His paper was recently presented to the Scottish Educational Research Association conference in Perth.

Want to keep reading for free?

Register with Tes and you can read two free articles every month plus you'll have access to our range of award-winning newsletters.

Keep reading for just £1 per month

You've reached your limit of free articles this month. Subscribe for £1 per month for three months and get:

  • Unlimited access to all Tes magazine content
  • Exclusive subscriber-only stories
  • Award-winning email newsletters
Recent
Most read
Most shared